ON THIS ISLAND...AND OTHERS

Ho Jae Lee, Steven Blier, Benjamin Dickerson, Hannah Dishman, Jack Swanson, Christine Price

It comes as no surprise that Steven Blier (Artistic Director of New York Festival of Song, collaborative pianist, educator, coach, recording artist, etc.) graduated from Yale with Honors in English Literature. His program notes are always invaluable and highly instructive. Furthermore, they are so well written that we find ourself wanting to quote directly from them instead of finding our own words. So, dear reader, when you see a phrase in quotes, please know exactly whom we are quoting, which surely beats plagiarizing. We hope the generous Mr. Blier will feel complimented.

The theme of last night's recital was Four Islands--comprising Ireland, Cuba, Madagascar, and Manhattan. Mr. Blier finds island dwellers to be "fundamentally different from our landlocked neighbors". Having been "under attack from outside enemies (we) must learn to protect ourselves from invasion".  Just think about that when you are trying to push through the throngs of Times Square to get to the theater!

The program opened with some Irish folksongs and regular readers will recall how taken we are with folk melodies. In "Siul A Ghra", soprano Christine Price and mezzo-soprano Hannah Dishman created some exquisite harmonies a cappella, even before Mr. Blier chimed in with a spare piano accompaniment. We haven't a clue what Gaelic is supposed to sound like but to our ears it sounded authentic. 

Ms. Dishman was then joined by baritone Benjamin Dickerson for a cute romantic ditty entitled "The Palatine's Daughter". From Mr. Blier's program notes, we learned that the Palatines were a German-speaking group who were forced out of their country by war in the early 18th c. and given asylum by England. Apparently they assimilated successfully, in this case through romance. The accompaniment by the flute of Marco Granados was lovely.

Let us skip over the song by Arnold Bax, a Brit who was as entranced by Ireland as was Victor Herbert, about whom we wrote last week.  But we won't skip without mentioning the powerful piano of Ho Jae Lee whose artistry on the piano is astonishing.

John Corigliano also set Irish folksongs and Ms. Price's clear and lovely soprano wove in and out of the fanciful line of the flute.

But the song from Ireland that captured our heart was Houston Collisson's "Eileen Og" which was given a charming and humor filled performance by tenor Jack Swanson, joined by Mr. Granados' flute. The song contained a very particular lesson for men who go a-courtin'.

The ship was ready to sail and off we went to Cuba where the "Spanish elements suppressed, resisted, slowly co-opted, and finally embraced the rhythms of the oppressed Afro-Cubans". Does that scenario sound familiar? Afro-Cubans were not freed from slavery until 1886 and yet, today, seem far more integrated than Afro-Americans.  Cuban music is a "grafting of Spanish elegance onto the complex throb of African rhythms".  (Wish we'd written that!)

It took four hands of piano (Mr. Blier and Mr. Lee) to give enough textural support to Mr. Swanson and Mr. Dickerson as they performed "Guarina", a lyrical serenade written by the untrained but gifted composer Sindo Garay.

Ms. Price, accompanied by Mr. Lee, excelled in Ernesto Lecuona's setting of "Quiero ser hombre", text by the Uruguayan feminist poet Juana Ibarbourou.

Cuba must stand among the nations of the New World which adapted the Spanish operetta known as zarzuela to their own use. Mr. Brier's droll explication added much to our enjoyment of "Aria de Matilde" from Jose Mauri's La Esclava. It was not the only piece to highlight difficult social issues like interracial romance, but it was one of the first.  Dark-skinned heroine (soprano) has dark-skinned lover (baritone) but gets seduced by aristocratic light-skinned man (tenor) gets pregnant and commits suicide. In this case, however, the aria was sung by a mezzo and Ms. Dishman sang it with lovely tone and depth of feeling.

The funniest song in Cuba must have been Emilio Grenet's "Tu no sab ingle" (sic) which sounds like a Spanish answer to ebonics. Mr. Dickerson (whom we have now heard in French, German, English, and Spanish) was hilarious lecturing his friend about his linguistic failure with American girls.

After the interval, we weighed anchor once more and set sail for Madagascar. The traditional Zulu melody, gloriously harmonized by Ms. Price, Ms. Dishman, and Mr. Swanson thrilled us with its strange words and interesting harmonies. 

However, as hard as we tried to like Maurice Ravel's Chansons Madecasses, we were unable to relate to the music. The French text of "Nahandove" and "Il est doux" was incredibly sensual which we readily picked up from Mr. Lee's piano and the delicacy of the cello, beautifully bowed by Nan-Cheng Chen. However, the vocal line did nothing for us and Mr. Dickerson's use of the music stand prevented us from feeling the connection we felt in the Zulu piece.

We were very happy to dock in Manhattan and Cole Porter's "I Happen to Like New York" perfectly expressed our sentiments. All four singers and all four hands on the piano were enlisted for this exciting final song with its punchy Anglo-Saxon rhymes.

But let us not omit the other wonderful songs in the Manhattan group. Ms. Price gave a galvanizing performance of "One Life to Live" from Kurt Weill's 1941 Lady in the Dark, in which she has a YOLO moment.  Ms. Dishman gave a highly convincing portrait of an auditioning actress in Jason Robert Brown's "When you Come Home to Me". (We sincerely hope that none of last night's artists ever have to endure such humiliation.)

Mr. Swanson sang an unpublished song by Irving Berlin, cut from the musical As Thousands Cheer. "Through a Keyhole" was considered too risque for its Depression-era Broadway and it certainly is filled with naughty innuendo which Mr. Swanson captured without exaggerating.  It was done just right.

As encore, we heard a composition by Villa Lobos based on the NewYork Skyline. 

It was a great cruise and we are glad to be home safe and sound to tell you all about it.

(c) meche kroop

CREPUSCOLO GOTTERDAMMERUNG

Erich Hoeprich, Cristoph Hammer. and Jessica Gould

The title of last night's Salon/Sanctuary Concert captivated us because of the apposition of Italian and German.  This resonated with us because of our own title.  As readers may have realized, "Meche" is not an Italian name but a Spanish one and is pronounced to rhyme with "leche".  Consequently "Voce di Meche" is half Spanish and half Italian.

Getting back to last night's concert, it was another triumph for Artistic Director/singer/impresario/scholar Jessica Gould to have assembled a superlative group of musicians to illustrate a fascinating period in European history. With her customary diligent scholarship she has peered at the twilight of the ancien regime through the lens of music. 

Napoleon's success led to a period of populism and accompanying unrest. In times of stress and social change, mankind often turns to the imagined delights of pastoral life for comfort.  Witness all the "farm to table" restaurants springing up lately in NYC!

Original instruments made their appearance (or replicas thereof) lending the sound of authenticity to the evening. Incredibly skillful musicians spoke briefly about their instruments and audience members expressed their interest in the beautiful wooden clarinet with its limited keys and string-bound reed, the wonderful fortepiano which was the link between the harpsichord and our modern piano, and the dulcet-toned "romantic guitar", smaller than the one seen today.

The program opened with Giacomo Meyerbeer's "Hirtenlied", performed by Ms. Gould herself with accompaniment by Erich Hoeprich's clarinet and Christoph Hammer's fortepiano. Our main interest is in vocal music and we were absolutely thrilled by Sei Ariette, composed by Domenico Maria Puccini, grandfather of Giacomo, who used the former's "Te Deum" in his famous opera Tosca. Puccini Grandpere's music was favored by Napoleon who preferred Italian music to French. Ms. Gould brought the songs to vivid life, accompanied by the guitar of master lutenist Diego Cantalupi, who discovered the songs himself in Italy.  They have never been performed in the USA and we felt privileged to hear them. The vocal line foreshadowed that of the Bel Canto period and the subject matter was pastoral in nature.

Further vocal delight was to be found in Ms. Gould's performance of Sechs deutsche Lieder, op 103 by Louis Spohr, once more accompanied by Mr. Hammer on the fortepiano and Mr. Hoeprich on the clarinet, pictured above. We particularly enjoyed the lullaby "Wiegenlied" and the rousing "Wach auf", glorifying the two opposite ends of the sleep cycle. We couldn't help thinking how suitable these gorgeous songs would be for performance at our local music conservatories. This instrumental combination was greatly enjoyed in the salons of Schubert.

The instrumental part of the evening was no less satisfying. Mr. Hammer gave a moving performance of Jan Ladislav Dussek's The Sufferings of the Queen of France, op. 23, a programmatic piece in which Marie Antoinette's anguish seemed most intense in the part where she is separated from her children. The part in which Mr. Hammer's expressive playing limned the "savage tumult of the rabble" was very effective, but the sound of the guillotine dropping was shocking.

We heard a lovely Serenade for clarinet and guitar, op.22 by the Viennese Benigne Henry in which the "Rondeau" had a lovely lilting and recurrent theme. Mr. Hoeprich and Mr. Cantalupi seemed destined to love making music together.

Similarly, Mr. Hammer and Mr. Catalupi didn't miss their chance to enjoy making music together with a delightful tidbit that was not on the program--two rondos by the Barese composer Mauro Giuliani, little known but much enjoyed.

Johann Nepomuk Hummel, a student of Mozart, is not much heard today but in his time he was considered the greatest pianist in Europe, a title later assumed by Franz Liszt. His Bagatelle op. 107, No 3 provided a golden opportunity for Mr. Hammer to have a solo.

Mr. Hammer was joined by Mr. Hoeprich for Carl Maria von Weber's Silvana Variations, op. 33, a highly melodic work that was filled with invention. We particularly enjoyed the Lento movement  in March tempo which made us think of a walk to the gallows, filled as it was with depth of feeling. It came to a gentle ending, making way for the duple metered Allegro which swung along until achieving a peaceful coda.

And finally, Johann Kaspar Mertz' Nocturne op. 4, no. 1 received a meditative and soulful performance from Mr. Cantalupi.

We very much enjoyed hearing music that was new to us and hearing such gifted artists in varying combinations.

Those familiar with Salon/Sanctuary Concerts know that one can always expect to discover something new and fulfilling!

(c) meche kroop

THEY CAME FOR THE SONATA...

Jonathan Biss and Mark Padmore at Zankel Hall

"They came for the sonata and stayed for the lieder" was the thought we entertained last night at Zankel Hall . It is rare that we attend a vocal recital without knowing at least a dozen people in the audience; last night there was a different audience from the one we see at vocal recitals and we had wondered whether they would enjoy the Schubert lieder on the second half of the program.  We needn't have concerned ourselves. The audience was held spellbound by Mr. Padmore's artistry and if they were not fans of lieder before the recital they surely will now be converts.

Although Mr. Padmore is a mature artist, the timbre of his voice is very youthful whilst his interpretive skills have been earned by experience. Moreover, he addressed the audience in a most gracious manner and spoke about the program, something we always appreciate.

The generous program comprised songs written toward the end of Schubert's tragically interrupted life with his full awareness that his time on earth was limited. A case has been made for how this influenced his song output but we cannot add to that argument.  All we can say is that we found a wide range of emotion in the chosen songs and that Mr. Padmore colored them with subtlety and communicated a depth of feeling.  And, for us, that is what lieder singing is all about.

A case was also made that Schubert's late songs give less melody to the vocal line.  Frankly, if modern composers paid half as much attention to a melodic vocal line we might enjoy contemporary music considerably more. The melodies are swirling around in our head even now. Some credit must go to the poets he chose to set--Johann Gabriel Seidl, Karl Gottfried von Leitner, Ludwig Rellstab, and, of course, Heinrich Heine.

Taking a closer look at our personal favorites, Rellstab's "In der Ferne" employed a dactyl meter in short punchy phrases that rhymed throughout, lending an impressive unity to the song, emphasized by Schubert's rhythmic setting. Rellstab's "Aufenthalt" followed the dactyl unit with a final stressed syllable, giving the song an insistent and propulsive feeling that echoed the rushing stream, the falling tears, and the beating heart.  In his "Herbst", the rhythm of the piano reminded one of "Gretchen am Spinnrade".  We are not suggesting that these songs sounded alike. Mr. Padmore made each song his own.

Von Leitner's poetry is different altogether and Schubert responded to it differently. In "Der Winterabend", so appropriate for last night, von Leitner wrote about the moonlight slipping lightly into his solitary room, spinning and weaving a shimmering veil ("schimmerndes Schleiertuch"); Shubert's music, as interpreted by Mr. Padmore, similarly spun and wove a shimmering veil over the audience.  We were transfixed!

In his "Des Fischers Liebesgluck", the piano introduces the strophic barcarolle in a minor key and plays the same theme as an interlude  between each stanza, a theme that once heard can never be forgotten. Mr. Padmore colored it beautifully and negotiated the upward leaps effectively. Strophic songs can become boring but not this one!

In Schubert's setting of Heine's "Die Stadt", the composer conveys both breeze and moisture by some kind of compositional legerdemain and the two artists ensured that we felt both. This was tonal painting at its apex!

The program ended with a setting of Seidl's cheerfully charming "Die Taubenpost".

The first half of the concert belonged to Jonathan Biss alone as he performed Schubert's Piano Sonata in A Major, D. 959 which was published posthumously. Mr. Biss' fingers literally flew over the keys in virtuosic splendor. It's always impressive when a superstar of the piano can also perform equally well as a collaborative pianist.

(c) meche kroop

WHILE MY GUITAR GENTLY....SINGS

Colin Davin, Elad Kabilio, and Larisa Martinez

You may observe that in the photo above Mr. Kabilio is blurry whilst Mr. Davin and Ms. Martinez appear rather sharp. The reason is that we do not have a fast enough lens on our iPhone and Mr. Kabilio never stops moving! Indeed this young man is always on the move. Gifted not only as a cellist but as an educator and a producer, the kinetic Mr. K. started Music Talks about six years ago and we have watched his audience growing until they outgrew their venue. Their new home is Interface, a spacious loft-like space on W. 30th St. Nothing pleases us more than seeing a Sold Out sign in connection with classical music.

In case you hadn't noticed, there is a quiet revolution going on the classical music world, one in which young artists are starting their own companies and presenting music in unusual venues in order to attract new young audience members. People who are reluctant to buy costly tickets to concert halls or invest huge amounts of money in subscriptions can more readily be tempted to attend a more casual venue for a modest entrance fee.

An advantage of this sea change is that unusual and highly specialized programs can be presented.  We are indeed in an era of specialization of taste.

Mr. K. certainly has his finger on the pulse of his audience and plays them as adroitly as he plays his cello, and that's saying a lot. He did not play the cello last night at Interface but rather put on his educator's cap and shared his ebullient enthusiasm with the comfortably seated audience.  The 90 minutes flew by and if you didn't leave with your feelings fulfilled and your brain stimulated, there is something wrong with you.

The subject of the evening was "Guitar Stories: Spain" and Mr. K. brought together two amazing artists to give us an evening as tasty as tapas. Celebrated guitarist Colin Davin immersed himself in the sounds of Iberia which Mr. K. explained is really many countries in one, revealing multiple influences from its neighbors. If the tour was too brief, then we travelers can explore further on our own.

Isaac Albeniz composed at the end of the 19th c. and, although he composed his Op. 232 for the piano, most people recognize it from its guitar transcriptions, probably most successfully accomplished by Andres Segovia. The key has been transcribed from G minor to E minor. The introduction, originally intended as a Preludio to a suite entitled Chants d'Espagne, was retitled by the publisher as "Asturias". However, to our ears, it is most definitely Andalusian in spirit.  Indeed we recognize one of the rhythms as a buleria.

Mr. Davin began pianissimo and built to an exciting intensity that brought the vigorous foot stamping of flamenco to mind. The insistent thematic repetition made it impossible to forget, and as the theme ascended the scale the excitement grew, with a more tranquil middle section providing a respite.

The fifth section of the work is entitled "Cordoba" and was given a soulful introduction. We particularly liked the quiet chorale-like section.

Federico Mompou, a Catalonian, did write for guitar and we heard selections from Suite Compostelana, commissioned by Segovia himself. Santiago de Compostela, the capitol of Galicia, is the culmination of a famous Christian pilgrimage in Northwest Spain. The "Preludio" shows the influence of nearby France whereas "Muineira" with its duple meter shows the Celtic influence on the area. Yes, the guitar can sound like bagpipes and yes, we did feel like dancing!

Poor Antonio Jose, executed at 34 during the Spanish Civil War, produced some fine music before he died.  His Sonata for Guitar has its organizational foot in Neoclassicism but its emotional foot (or heart, as it were) in Impressionism. He paid tribute to his teacher Maurice Ravel in "Pavana Triste" which had a limping rhythm reminding one of sobs. Mr. Davin's fingerwork in the Finale was rapid fire.

The culmination of the evening was Manuel de Falla's Siete Canciones Populares Espanolas, a piece that was written for soprano and piano. Although that is the way we are accustomed to hearing it, we loved the way it sounded on the guitar which was an equal partner to the lovely Larisa Martinez' luscious soprano. Her exquisite tone and clear diction conveyed the meaning of the text with Mr. Davin's guitar supplying the witty subtext. The songs are concise and pungent with ample opportunity to change mood by color and texture.

Our only quibble was that the seven songs were not performed as a unit, as they are meant to be. The cycle was interrupted twice for Mr. K. to explain the songs to the audience, which broke the mood. We believe this was a well-intentioned attempt to educate the audience and we do understand that people's attention spans are growing shorter by the megabyte, but the cycle begs to be heard in one piece!

(c) meche kroop

GETTIN' YER IRISH UP

The lassies: Joanie Brittingham, Vira Slywotzky, and Katherine Corle
The lads: Jason Robinette, Ross Brown, Anthony Maida, David Seatter, Richard Holmes and Jovani McCleary

No, no, no, we are not angry.  Au contraire, we are absolutely tickled with our evening spent with Victor Herbert Renaissance Project LIVE! about whom we have written before.  VHRPL is celebrated for bringing the works of this early 20th c. composer to lively life. Last night's concert, in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day, presented a selection of his songs celebrating his Irish heritage.  Imagine the shock of finding out that Mr. Herbert probably never set foot in Ireland, a rather new discovery!

Still, he had an Irish soul, thanks to his mother and maternal grandfather with whom he lived for a period in England. As a matter of fact, he set some of his grandfather's poetry and we were fortunate to hear some of Samuel Lover's text, one of which was sung by the excellent and versatile soprano Vira Slywotzky (one of the founding members of VHRPL) who also narrated the evening with great style and dulcet tone. The song, entitled "Angel's Whisper" was based on the legend that when a baby smiles in his/her sleep it's because of conversation with an angel.  In the song, which touched our heart, a mother is reassured about the safety of her mariner husband when her baby smiles.  Awwww!

Mr. Lover also wrote humorous songs and we just loved "The Birth of St. Patrick" which described the embattled Irish temperament with two camps disagreeing about the date St. Patrick was born. A diplomatic priest added the two dates together and came up with the 17th, thus solving the problem. Too bad "the troubles" could not have been so easily sorted out! The song was performed by tenor Anthony Maida and baritones Jovani McCleary and David Seatter.

Another favorite of ours involving the grandfather's poetry was the romantic "Live in My Heart and Pay No Rent", for which the versatile fellow also wrote the music. Mr. Maida gave it a fine performance.

Of all the gentlemen, the one whose timbre was closest to what one expects in an Irish tenor was Jason Robinette, whose delivery of "Mary Came Over to Me" touched the heart with the joy of a reunion of two lovers when the woman finally arrives in America.

Tenor Ross Brown shone as the Irish Don Juan in "Barney Maguire" from Mr. Herbert's 1906 show "Miss Dolly Dollars". The charming choreography by Director/Choreographer Emily Cornelius brought in the lovely sopranos Joanie Brittingham and Katherine Corle.

The ensemble work was in every instance delightful, particularly when all six men joined in for the drinking song "The Cruiskeen Lawn" which was performed a cappella. The admirably crisp enunciation we had enjoyed in solo pieces carried over and we understood every rowdy word of this folk song arranged by Mr. Herbert.

We wish to alert our readers to the upcoming performance of Herbert's 1917 operetta Eileen on April 25th and 26th because the songs on last night's program taken from that show were so special. If you've never heard "My Little Irish Rose", you will be enchanted. Ms. Corle sang it beautifully. There were three other songs from the show on the program, all memorably melodic. Notably, Eileen will have an orchestra!

Some of the songs were about Ireland's struggle for freedom from oppression and some were about the contributions of the Irish to America's cause in The Great War.

There was still more to interest the listener. Adding to Herbert's Irish heart were the skills of composition that he learned growing up in his father's Germany. Ireland had never produced a song cycle before and Mr. Herbert wrote one entitled The Bards of Ireland which was performed in 1908 for the Society of Friends of the Sons of Ireland. Thomas Moore's lyrics to Old Irish Airs were arranged by Mr. Herbert. We make no claims that this cycle rivals those of Schubert and Schumann but it was surely a treat to hear a work that was never published.  Leave it to Artistic Director Alyce Mott!

Strangely, however, our favorite part of this song cycle was the piano solo "Lament for Owen Roe O'Neill" played on the piano by Music Director Michael Thomas. Sometimes words are superfluous. Baritone Richard Holmes gave a lovely performance of "Remember the Glories of Brien the Brave".

We believe it is important, particularly at this time in our history, to acknowledge the contributions made to the USA by the Irish. Every ethnic group that has come to our great nation has been at first despised, later accepted, and eventually celebrated.  Let us not forget that!  It's time to make America great again!  Yes, by welcoming immigrants.  And you can quote us on that one!

(c) meche kroop

VOCALIS CONSORT

Martin Neron, Sonya Headlam, Sahoko Sato Timpone, Christopher Sierra, and Sean McCarther

The Vocalis Consort is new to us but the pianist is not. We have heard him before at Opera America and the prospect of hearing him perform Spanish (and Spanish influenced) music was a tempting one. We wished that the concert might have been better attended since the offerings were most fulfilling.

The first half of the program comprised music by Spanish composers. Tenor Cristopher Sierra has a nice unforced sound and sings with sazon. We enjoyed a pair of songs by Fernando Obradors, a self taught Catalan composer who arranged his country's folk songs.  Folk songs are always appealing due to their memorable melodies; his are no exception. We have always loved the beautiful sentiment of "Del cabello mas sutil" and Mr. Sierra sang it as beautifully as it was written, with both passion and tenderness in equal measure. Mr. Neron's rippling piano accompaniment was lovely.

Soprano Sonya Headlam has a lovely voice but was unfortunately "on the book" for her selections from Joaquin Nin-Culmell's Sephardic songs. There was no audience contact and we felt shut out. But we did enjoy the piano accompaniment in "La rosa enflorece".

Argentinian composer Carlos Guastavino is a favorite of ours and baritone Sean McCarther sang the violent "Milonga de Dos Hermanos" with pleasing tone but a deficiency of passion.

Guastavino's melancholy "La rosa y el sauce" was given a nice interpretation by mezzo-soprano Sahoko Sato Timpone. The brightness of her tone brought "Jota" to life--one of a pair of songs from Manuel de Falla's Siete canciones populares espanolas. Mr. Neron's piano provided the rhythmic thrust. The gentle lullaby "Nana" was lovely.

Ms. Sato Timpone surely captured the humor of Obradors' "El Vito".

The second half of the program comprised Robert Schumann's Spanisches Liederspiel op 74.  Schumann was not the only composer to set German translations of Spanish folksongs. We have often heard Hugo Wolf's "Spanisches Liederbuch" but this was our first hearing of the Schumann. All four singers took the stage and joined forces in various combinations and with gorgeous harmonies. We were reminded of Brahms' Liebeslieder Walzer, and that's a good thing!

The actor Igor Correa was on hand to weave the songs into a story. Perhaps Schumann's Dichterliebe can have a story imposed upon it but it was a mighty stretch to form a story out of his Spanisches Liederspiel. Nonetheless, Mr. Correa narrated it well.

Ms. Headlam and Ms. Sato Timpone harmonized beautifully in the charming "Erste Begegnung". The men took over with equivalent success for "Intermezzo". Come to think of it, however one paired the voices, they sounded swell together. We particularly enjoyed the two numbers in which all four members of the ensemble sang together--"Es ist verrathen" and "Ich bin geliebt". 

In a work of this sort, being "on the book" makes sense and would seem necessary. We do have one suggestion however. We would have liked the texts in the original language, as well as the English translations.

We were delighted to be introduced to such a superb song cycle and equally delighted to see a new group on the music scene of New York City.  We look forward to future performances and to Vocalis Consort reaching a wider audience.

(c) meche kroop

APPLE OF OUR EYE (and ear)

Ken Noda, Sarah Mesko, and Paul Appleby

What gives us the greatest pleasure in life is witnessing the growth of young artists. We have thrilled to the performances of tenor Paul Appleby since we started writing--no, even before--from Juilliard to leading roles on the stages of the world's greatest opera houses. We have been there when he was showered with awards from all the leading foundations. And yesterday he appeared as the "senior" member of a duo at the George London Foundation recital series, having been awarded a half dozen years ago. His rapid ascent can be attributed to his impressive expressive qualities and commitment to whatever he sings.  Besides all that, he has a tonal quality that goes straight to the heart.

The final piece on yesterday's program at The Morgan Library (a very special series for those of us who adore the human voice) was a duet with the "junior" member of the team mezzo-soprano Sarah Mesko, who was honored by the foundation just two years ago. The duet was the final scene from Georges Bizet's Carmen, a scene which has always seemed to go on a bit too long for our taste causing us to inwardly mutter "Stab her already".  But not yesterday!  The performance was so intense that we had to restrain ourselves from leaping onstage to prevent Don Jose from stabbing Carmen.

This frightening reality was created without set or costumes. We have never seen/heard it performed better. When Don Jose cradled the dying Carmen in his arms we could not hold back the tears. Ms. Mesko has experience with the role and Mr. Appleby absolutely must add this to his already substantial repertoire. Don Jose is a complex character and Mr. Appleby's artistry captured all of it. Interestingly, the two artists appeared together at the Santa Fe Opera a few years back in Offenbach's La Grand Duchesse de Gerolstein, which we reviewed so enthusiastically.

With that bedazzlement out of the way, let us consider the remainder of the program. Ms. Mesko's voice has the quality of liquid caramel and felt so totally perfect for Brahms whose "Die Mainacht" was the standout of her first set. Accompanied by the fine violist Andrew Gonzalez, she also gave a beautiful interpretation of Brahms' Zwei Gesange, op.91. The artist filled "Gestillte Sehnsucht" with restless longing. "Geistliches Wiegenlied" is a lullaby to the Christ child that we have often heard. Mr. Gonzalez' line echoed the vocal line and the repetition of the phrase "stillet die Wipfel" will not quit our ear.

We might add that Ms. Mesko's German diction was superb and she filled Hugo Wolf's "Der Mond hat eine schwere Klag erhoben" with wonder. She also accomplished a rare feat by singing English with superb enunciation. As far as the French, we found Gabriel Faure's "Clair de lune" to be wanting more fluidity of line to bring out the sensuality achieved by Ken Noda's superb accompaniment.  We even had the curious thought that the English song preceding the "Clair de Lune" had set her up for a choppier delivery.

We liked the way Ms. Mesko addressed the audience and told about her choices. She related how Hector Berlioz added something to Virgil's account of Dido's death when he wrote the libretto for Les Troyens. When she sang "Ah! Je vais mourir" we got Dido's anger at the abandoning Aeneas...followed by Berlioz' addition of an adagio section in which she expresses her gratitude for the good things in her life. In this part, we heard the longer legato line that we wanted to hear in the earlier "Clair de lune".

Mr. Appleby, so passionately convincing in opera, revealed a different side of his artistry in a set of songs by Britten. He is a thinking man's artist and can only be admired for choosing material that resonates with him. That it doesn't resonate with us does not take away anything. His attention to text is impressive and he mines every song for meaning. When we read the title of the song cycle On This Island, all we could think about was Mr. Appleby's thrilling performance at the Met in Enchanted Island! But this set of songs, settings of text by W.H.Auden, although they did not enchant us, held our interest.

We enjoyed the embellishments in "Let the florid music praise!" and the Brecht/Weill flavor of "Now the leaves are falling fast". The dirge-like "Nocturne" appealed to us because the text rhymed and scanned. But the most affecting was the sardonic and bitter "As it is, plenty" which Mr. Appleby invested with great dramatic import.

We cannot say that the set of Poulenc songs held our attention. Tel jour, telle nuit was set to text by Paul Eluard which struck us as surreal and not worthy of setting.

We would have been happy to have left the recital all shook up by the Carmen but the generous artists supplied encores. Ms. Mesko gave a delightful delivery of "Everybody Says Don't" from Sondheim's 1864 Broadway show Anyone Can Whistle. The show did not do well but the song is a winner.

Mr. Appleby's encore was Ned Rorem's paean to "The Lordly Hudson". Well performed as one would expect, but we would prefer to see the river through the eyes of a painter of the Hudson River School!

The talented pair closed the program with Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Dirge for Fidele" also known as "Fear no more the heat o' the sun", text from Shakespeare's Cymbeline. The overlapping voices and peaceful harmonies were perfect.

But the most perfect performance of all was that of collaborative pianist Ken Noda who is as supportive of the artist as he is brilliant on the keys.

(c) meche kroop